Divining a plan
General Summary
Leaving the Rebels
Sexembra 7, 888 Af.
Morning dawned, and the group gathered while a group of the rebels were practicing with their weapons. At best, they would be a distraction in the coming days, but it appeared as though they were willing to die doing so.
The party joined Malcer, Erin, and the other rebel leaders in the command tent. Malcer laid out their situation, and it was clear that they were prepared to make a final stand. Malcer was willing to answer any questions they had, and to alter their tactics to fit the party, but they would not be dissuaded from ending it by the solstice.
Ultimately, the party decided to make their own approach. They questioned whether this was actually the thing they were supposed to do. The vision made it clear that they were supposed to be there, and the Dominus had been killed, but not which among them had done the killing, and not what would happen in the aftermath. They headed out of the sessiloth's influence, and sought advice from the cards and the Empyrean.
Sif brought out the Deck of Divination, and they asked what the result would be of the current plan to assault the Dominus. The five of wands and the ten of coins, crossed by Death. The suits of the poor and the rich, both covered by Death, either literal or meaning great change. As usual, the deck was not exactly clear, but it gave some direction to their next plan, to question the other planes.
With the questions, they decided to focus on whether or not the Dominus was truly the force they should be fighting, or if there was something else. They discussed what to ask in detail, and when ready, Sif cast the spell. The first question confirmed their suspicions - something other, unknown force was directing the Dominus' actions. The next question was more direct, trying to determine if they could magically transport into the palace, while the answer was muddled. A yes, but with some hesitation. They would think more about that later, but for now they had to press forward. They asked whether or not the Temple of Vicien was a front for an evil entity, which was a yes, and what was worshiped in the Tower of Worship, with the answer of Diabolus. The final question was whether or not the Dominus' crown allowed him to cast spells, which was answered with a clear no.
Some direction was better than none, but they did not exactly have a clear plan. It was time to head into the city, to the boarding house the resistance told them could provide shelter. They made it near dark, disguising themselves as a group of humans to blend in with the locals. Kashak, disguised as a human child, decided to go to the kitchen and listen to the people there. The people were generally afraid of the peerage. Prices were up everywhere, as the Dominus and his court bled the people dry with taxes and fees. A few of the traders staying there were discussing whether it was still worth it to trade in the Dominion, and they were leaning towards leaving if they could.
Sif summoned an imp, drawing a bit on her Coin to do so. She sent it to scout the palace, and it came in undetected, entering the main hall. There, it attempted to get deeper inside the palace, and eventually was in the right place as a door opened. Moments after entering the room, Sif lost connection with the imp, with no inkling of what happened. She couldn't even bring it back from a pocket dimension - it was just gone. Because of this, they sent other flying scouts to the palace, where they quickly found the reason. The trees surrounding the palace all held sessiloths. With the sheer numbers, most of the palace would be completely cut off from magic. The imp would have been instantly visible, and would have little chance at escape without magical help.
Durdeg and Kasret both went out into the city, separating to cover more ground. They both found similar things - the city was deteriorating, with thieves in the streets and in the shops. The merchants of the city had gone beyond the bounds of healthy profit, and were attempting to gouge every copper they could. And the alleys held desperate people, ready to kill for a coin, although not skilled enough to survive long. Durdeg secured the group a base of operations near the palace, by purchasing a potion seller's wagon and their spot on Peerage Way. They returned to the boarding house, where they joined the others through the doorway to Sharlot's magnificent mansion, and got a night's rest.
Commence Au Festival
Sexemra 8, 888 Af.
The next morning, they decided to check with the cards and the Empyrean again, hoping to narrow down a possible plan. After some initial discussions, they thought that they may need to eliminate the sessiloths - they knew that it would prevent them from teleporting inside by any means, as well as interfering with their own abilities. Sif dealt the cards, asking what the outcome of that plan would be.
She dealt card after card, one of the largest spreads they had seen from it. First, the Star, which Sif, the Deck's way of saying they must reassess, or have asked the wrong question. That was quickly followed by the Magician, the High Priestess, and the Devil in a column - powerful magic, gods and demons. Next, the Tower, the nine of cups, and Death, and least two bad outcomes, it seemed, although nothing was ever completely clear with the cards. The last two cards may have been the clearest on the board - the King of Pentacles, what the had already seen as a stand-in for the Dominus, covered by Justice. It seemed that the Dominus would get what he deserved, one way or another.
The cards had spoken, and they decided to contact the Empyrean again. Another carefully planned list of questions, and the spell was cast. The first question seemed obvious in retrospect, but they confirmed that the only secret way in was through the sewers, that ran the length of the peerage before flowing under the palace and to the river. Who would be the best person to impersonate to infiltrate the palace, and how to best pull that off gave them the name of Atham Morely and that money would be the key. Finally, they asked why they needed to reassess, and were told unintended consequences.
With the questions answered, the group discussed what to do next.
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